#20: War of the Worlds Didn’t Send the US into a Terrified Frenzy

War of the Worlds was an episode of the radio show called The Mercury Theatre, which was written and directed by Orson Welles. This particular episode occurred on October 30th, 1938, as a Halloween special. While some people did panic, most recognized the show for what it was.

This is a case of sensational journalism, and playing it up meant people were more likely to tune in next time, so no one corrected the journalists. It remains the most famous broadcast to this day, simply because it’s not hard to believe that people actually would panic if they heard it on the radio without warning.